Expert: Jonathan Wright - 7/8/2009

Question
i live in sandpoint idaho on the out skirts of town and there are woods behind my house, there is also a trail that i run on in the morning and im worried about cougars. how can i keep myself safe and when is the best time to run where they wont be hunting

Answer
Dear Anna

Thank you for your question. I also wish to thank the authors of the websites I used.

When I was a boy, it was very rare for a cougar to attack a person. Now cougar attacks are becoming more common and you aere right to be wary about running in cougar country.

http://www.essortment.com/all/mountainlions_rxum.htm says that cougar attacks are swift and deadly and many attacks occur in regular residential zones. These attacks are usually by desperate, starving young males, but usually cougars are very solitary animals and try to avoid human contact.

http://www.essortment.com/all/mountainlions_rxum.htm suggests that people travel in large groups and stay on heavily trafficked trails. You should watch out for signs of carcasses – buried or fresh – and large deer herds. This means that there is often a cougar around.

ENCOUNTERING A COUGAR
http://www.essortment.com/all/mountainlions_rxum.htm says that if you encounter a cougar, stay calm and don’t approach. Give it a chance to flee. Do not bend over or crouch, as this may make you seem to be a four-legged animal. Make eye contact with the cougar and try to look as large as possible. Hold your arms in the air, and, if you’re wearing a jacket, open it. Talk to the cougar in a loud, firm voice. Throw rocks, sticks, branches, or anything you can reach without bending or crouching. Hopefully the cougar will see you as a threat and run. If the cougar is starving or is no longer afraid of humans, it may attack. You should fight back and try to stay upright during the attack, as most cougars go for the head or neck. http://www.naturealmanac.com/cougars/attacks.html says that most healthy people have fought off a cougar attack.

http://www.naturealmanac.com/cougars/attacks.html says
Do not run, this can trigger an instinctive attack
Make yourself larger, by opening your jacket and raising your arms
Be especially alert at dawn and dusk
Travel in groups
Children should walk beside adults.
Leave dogs at home.
Maintain eye contact, while slowly backing away
If it approaches, throw objects at it while waving your arms
Fight back if attacked, using stones, sticks or other objects

http://www.naturealmanac.com/cougars/attacks.html says that if adult women wander off alone in cougar territory, they may become targets for hunting cats. It seems that most of these victims ran from the cat, triggering its attack. Please note that it's impossible to outrun a cougar.

The information above indicates that you should go for your run in an organised group, rather than by yourself. If you do decide to run alone, avoid running at dawn and dusk. If you follow the advice above, you should be OK. Please note that cougar attacks are relatively uncommon and that you should encourage the cougar to run away.

All the best

Jonathan